As moms, we all know that hands have the potential to carry disease into our bodies via our eyes, nose and mouth. When we get our kids into the hand-washing habit, we are helping their overall health and potentially ours as well. Here are some tips to start this habit today: Give kids the facts. The truth is that their hands could be dirtier than a public toilet seat. Even if they wash their hands after using the bathroom, things that they shared in school or touched while out may have other people’s fecal matter on them. Set your family expectations around hand-washing and stick to them. Make sure they’re washing hands when they come home from school after bags are emptied, after toileting and always before a meal. When we reinforce the habit, it becomes second nature. Use a reminding picture and/or words to help. Diagrams or notes on the bathroom mirror can help to cue kids to wash their hands—teach them how to do it properly (singing a song for the correct duration) and then have them teach Grandma or Dad so that they are sharing helpful knowledge and feel capable. Are you wondering why your child says she washed her hands when she didn’t? This is a common behaviour for preschoolers. One of the easiest ways to stop the lie is to stop asking a question when you already know the answer. Instead, state what you know: “I didn’t hear water. You need to go back and wash hands.” We suggest a different script: when your child comes out of the bathroom, say: “Smell check!” If soap was used, the child will be happy to let you smell her hands. If not, she’ll head back in and wash them. No more arguing and no more lies. Good to Know: It’s also really important to have a small container of hand sanitizer on hand in your purse for those emergency situations where a sink isn’t on hand. Here’s a fun video that introduces the ‘how-to’s’ of hand washing to your younger ones.